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Wednesday, October 1, 2014

From mid-August to October 1, 2014, CDC or state public health laboratories have confirmed a total of 500 people from 42 states and the District of Columbia with respiratory illness caused by EV-D68. The 42 states are (Newly added states are listed in BOLD type):

Alabama

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia (Washington, DC)

Georgia

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Texas

Utah

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

This indicates that at least one case has been detected in each state listed but does not indicate how widespread infections are in each state.

CDC is prioritizing testing of specimens from children with severe respiratory illness. Of the specimens tested by CDC lab, about half have tested positive for EV-D68. About one third have tested positive for an enterovirus or rhinovirus other than EV-D68.

In the upcoming weeks, more states will have confirmed cases of EV-D68 infection.

The primary reason for increases in cases is that several states are investigating clusters of people with severe respiratory illness, and specimens are still being tested for EV-D68. It can take a while to test specimens and obtain lab results. That’s because the testing is complex and slower, and can only be done by CDC and a small number of state public health laboratories. As the backlog of specimens is processed, the number of states and confirmed cases will likely increase. These increases will not necessarily reflect changes in real time, or mean that the situation is getting worse.

Some of the increase will be from new EV-D68 infections since people are more likely to get infected with enteroviruses in the summer and fall. We are currently in the middle of the enterovirus season.